# 1964 Cleveland Browns season

The 1964 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 19th season, and 15th season with the National Football League. The Browns won the NFL Championship, despite having not made the playoffs in six seasons.

## Regular season

The regular season was a success with the Browns finishing with a regular season record of 10–3–1. They were coached by Blanton Collier who had replaced Paul Brown the previous season. The team had a tremendous amount of heart, which was demonstrated by the fact that they had key commanding wins throughout the season. For instance, they swept their arch rival New York Giants, who the previous year had edged them out as the eastern conference champion. Not only did they win both times that they played against the Giants but both wins were very convincing, the first being a 42–20 home victory and the second being a 52–20 away victory. The second victory over the Giants was a clutch, season ending game that clinched the eastern conference title. Many of the Browns' wins during the regular season were in a very commanding manner, with a 37–21 win over the Detroit Lions being a prime example. The win over the Lions carried extra significance due to the fact that the Lions had been the team that knocked them out of the conference champion hunt the previous season by beating them 38–10 in the second to last regular season game.
The Browns were led by Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown who had a stellar regular season, rushing for 1,446 yards with a 5.2 yards/carry average. Although they had a great rushing game, the Browns had a very balanced offense, choosing not to just hand the ball to Brown on every play. The quarterback of the team was Frank Ryan who had a decent season throwing for 2,404 yards and 25 touchdowns while throwing 19 interceptions. The top receivers of the team were Paul Warfield and Gary Collins, the second of whom would become a legend by catching three touchdowns in the championship game against the heavily favored Baltimore Colts.

## Championship Game

Leading into the game, the Browns were huge underdogs. Most experts had them losing by double digits. Baltimore was so heavily favored that after the Browns won the game, Sports Illustrated had to scramble to find a picture of a Browns player to put on its cover. Baltimore had the league's best offense and had a league best record of 12–2. They were stacked with future Hall of Famers such as Johnny Unitas, Lenny Moore, and John Mackey. The Browns though, were unfazed by the apparent talent disparity and Jim Brown was reported stating before the game, "we're going to kick their [butt] today." The game-time temperature that day was 34 degrees and felt much colder in 15- to 25-mph winds whipping under gray December sky. The Municipal Stadium crowd of 79,544 was the second largest in NFL title-game history at the time. The Browns knew that if they wanted to be in the game they had to make a statement early on, and they did just that. Galen Fiss, the Browns team captain, broke up a screen pass from Unitas to Moore, sending Moore airborne for a loss. The Browns tenacity on defense is what got them to the half time score of 0–0. Brown's running back Ernie Green reported after the game about half time, "We cleaned ourselves and sat down, and it seemed like something came over all of us. I think we all kind of looked at each other and concluded, 'Hey, we can beat these guys.'" Not only did the Browns "beat" the Colts in the second half, They destroyed them, scoring 27 unanswered points. Gary Collins became a Cleveland Browns legend by catching three touch down passes, the third one being a 51-yarder with Colts defender Bobby Boyd all over him. The biggest story of the game was how well Cleveland's defense played against Baltimore's heralded offense. Cleveland was able to hold Unitas to just 95 yards while intercepting him twice.

## Lasting value

This was the last major sports championship won by a Cleveland-based team until 2016, when the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team that was formed in 1970, defeated the defending champion Golden State Warriors in a seven-game NBA Finals. Not only is it remembered in Cleveland but ESPN ranks the '64 title game as the second-greatest NFL postseason upset, behind only Joe Namath's guaranteed win over the Colts in Super Bowl III four seasons later.

## Offseason
### 1964 draft class

1964 Cleveland Browns Draft :
| Round | Selection | Player | Position | College |
| 1 | 11 | Paul Warfield | Wide receiver | Ohio State |
| 2 | 26 | Billy Truax | Defensive end | LSU |
| 4 | 54 | Don Shackelford | Tackle | Pacific |
| 5 | 67 | Dick Klein | Tackle | Wichita State |
| 7 | 95 | Sammy Odom | Linebacker | Northwestern (LA) State |
| 8 | 110 | Leroy Kelly | Running back | Morgan State |
| 9 | 123 | John Briscoe | Linebacker | Arizona |
| 10 | 135 | Bobby Robinson | Guard | Mississippi |
| 10 | 138 | Dick Van Raaphorst | Kicker | Ohio State |
| 11 | 151 | Eddie Versprille | Fullback | Alabama |
| 12 | 166 | Ed Mitchell | Tackle | Southern |
| 13 | 179 | Bob Meehan | Guard | Syracuse |
| 14 | 194 | Terry Sieg | Running back | Virginia |
| 15 | 207 | John Houtman | Tackle | Michigan |
| 16 | 222 | Sid Williams | End | Southern |
| 17 | 235 | Larry Bartolameolli | Tackle | Western Michigan |
| 18 | 250 | Sherman Lewis | Defensive back | Michigan State |
| 19 | 263 | Jim Higgins | Guard | Xavier |
| 20 | 278 | Dave Archer | Tackle | Syracuse |

## Exhibition schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Score | Record | Stadium | Attendance | Time (ET) | Local TV | Radio |
| 1 | August 9 | at San Francisco 49ers | L | 7–26 | 0–1 | Kezar Stadium | 27,404 | 4:30 PM EDT | | WGAR–AM |
| 2 | August 15 | at Los Angeles Rams | W | 56–31 | 1–1 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 43,183 | 11:00 PM EDT | WEWS-TV | WERE–AM |
| 3 | August 22 | vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (at Akron) | W | 42–7 | 2–1 | Rubber Bowl | 27,255 | 8:00 PM EDT | | WERE–AM |
| 4 | August 28 | at Detroit Lions | W | 35–14 | 3–1 | Tiger Stadium | 36,946 | 8:00 PM EDT | WEWS-TV | WGAR–AM |
| 5 | September 5 | Green Bay Packers | W | 20–17 | 4–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 83,736 | 9:00 PM EDT | | WGAR–AM |
Notes:
    $^a$ All times are Eastern time.
There was a doubleheader on September 5, 1964, Giants vs Lions and Packers vs Browns.

## Regular season schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Score | Record | Stadium | Attendance | Time (ET) | Network | Radio | Recap |
| 1 | September 13 | at Washington Redskins | W | 27–13 | 1–0 | District of Columbia Stadium | 47,577 | 1:30 PM EDT | CBS | WGAR–AM | Recap |
| 2 | September 20 | St. Louis Cardinals | T | 33–33 | 1–0–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 76,954 | 1:30 PM EDT | CBS | WGAR–AM | Recap |
| 3 | September 27 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W | 28–20 | 2–0–1 | Franklin Field | 60,671 | 1:30 PM EDT | CBS | WGAR–AM | Recap |
| 4 | October 4 | Dallas Cowboys | W | 27–6 | 3–0–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 72,062 | 1:30 PM EDT | CBS | WGAR–AM | Recap |
| 5 | October 10 | Pittsburgh Steelers | L | 7–23 | 3–1–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 80,530 | 8:00 PM EDT | Sports Network Incorporated (SNI) | WERE–AM | Recap |
| 6 | October 18 | at Dallas Cowboys | W | 20–16 | 4–1–1 | Cotton Bowl | 37,456 | 2:30 PM EDT | CBS | WERE–AM | Recap |
| 7 | October 25 | New York Giants | W | 42–20 | 5–1–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 81,050 | 1:30 PM EST | CBS | WERE–AM | Recap |
| 8 | November 1 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W | 30–17 | 6–1–1 | Pitt Stadium | 49,568 | 1:30 PM EST | CBS | WERE–AM | Recap |
| 9 | November 8 | Washington Redskins | W | 34–24 | 7–1–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 76,385 | 1:30 PM EST | CBS | WERE–AM | Recap |
| 10 | November 15 | Detroit Lions | W | 37–21 | 8–1–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 83,064 | 1:30 PM EST | CBS | WERE–AM | Recap |
| 11 | November 22 | vs. Green Bay Packers (at Milwaukee) | L | 21–28 | 8–2–1 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 48,065 | 2:00 PM EST | CBS | WERE–AM | Recap |
| 12 | November 29 | Philadelphia Eagles | W | 38–24 | 9–2–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 79,289 | 1:30 PM EST | CBS | WERE–AM | Recap |
| 13 | December 6 | at St. Louis Cardinals | L | 19–28 | 9–3–1 | Busch Stadium | 31,585 | 2:00 PM EST | CBS | WERE–AM | Recap |
| 14 | December 12 | at New York Giants | W | 52–20 | 10–3–1 | Yankee Stadium | 63,007 | 2:00 PM EST | CBS | WERE–AM | Recap |
    Note:$^a$ All times are Eastern time. (UTC–4; UTC–5 starting October 25)

## Game summaries
### Week 1: at Washington Redskins

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Browns | 0 | 13 | 7 | 7 | 27 |
| Redskins | 0 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 13 |

### Week 2: vs. St. Louis Cardinals

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cardinals | 10 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 33 |
| Browns | 6 | 10 | 7 | 10 | 33 |

### Week 3: at Philadelphia Eagles

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Browns | 7 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 28 |
| Eagles | 7 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 20 |

### Week 4: vs. Dallas Cowboys

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Cowboys | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| • Browns | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 27 |

### Week 5: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Steelers | 10 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 23 |
| Browns | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |

### Week 6: at Dallas Cowboys

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Browns | 7 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
| Cowboys | 0 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 16 |

### Week 7: vs. New York Giants

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Giants | 6 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 20 |
| • Browns | 0 | 7 | 7 | 28 | 42 |

### Week 8: at Pittsburgh Steelers

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Browns | 0 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 30 |
| Steelers | 0 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 17 |

### Week 9: vs. Washington Redskins

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Redskins | 0 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 24 |
| • Browns | 0 | 13 | 14 | 7 | 34 |

### Week 10: vs. Detroit Lions

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Lions | 14 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| • Browns | 7 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 37 |

### Week 11: at Green Bay Packers

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Browns | 14 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
| • Packers | 7 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 28 |

### Week 12: vs. Philadelphia Eagles

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 3 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 24 |
| • Browns | 7 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 38 |

### Week 13: at St. Louis Cardinals

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Browns | 3 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 19 |
| • Cardinals | 0 | 21 | 7 | 0 | 28 |

### Week 14: at New York Giants

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| • Browns | 3 | 21 | 21 | 7 | 52 |
| Giants | 0 | 7 | 0 | 13 | 20 |

### Game Officials

| Week | Opponent | Referee | Umpire | Head Linesman | Back Judge | Field Judge |
| 1 | at Washington | (23) Harry Brubaker | (18) Tony Sacco | (8) Grover Klemmer | (29) Stan Jaworowski | (32) Jim Tunney |
| 2 | St. Louis | (7) Tom Bell | (20) Frank Sinkovitz | (30) George Murphy | (25) Tom Kelleher | (34) Fritz Graf |
| 3 | at Philadelphia | (52) George Rennix | (51) Lou Palazzi | (28) Bill Schleibaum | (24) Bruce Alford | (10) Charles Sweeney |
| 4 | Dallas | (56) Norm Schachter | (4) James Beiersdorfer | (26) Ed Marion | (33) Art Holst | (27) Herm Rohrig |
| 5 | Pittsburgh | | | | | |
| 6 | at Dallas | Bill Downes | (4) James Beiersdorfer | Sam Cooperman | Armen Terzian | Joe Gonzales |
| 7 | New York | (56) Norm Schachter | | | | |
| 8 | at Pittsburgh | | | | | |
| 9 | Washington | (52) George Rennix | | | | |
| 10 | Detroit | (55) Tony Skovar | | | | |
| 11 | vs. Green Bay (at Milwaukee) | | | | | |
| 12 | Philadelphia | (3) Jim Pace | | | | |
| 13 | at St. Louis | | | | | |
| 14 | at New York | | | | | |

## Playoffs

| Round | Date | Opponent | Result | Score | Stadium | Attendance | Time (ET) | Network | Local Radio | National Radio | Recap |
| NFL Championship Game | December 27 | Baltimore Colts | W | 27–0 | Cleveland Stadium | 79,544 | 1:30 PM EST | CBS | WERE–AM | CBS | Recap |
Notes:
    $^a$ All times are EASTERN time.

### 1964 NFL Championship Game: vs. Baltimore Colts

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Colts | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| • Browns | 0 | 0 | 17 | 10 | 27 |

### Officials

| Round | Opponent | Referee | Umpire | Head Linesman | Back Judge | Field Judge | Alternates |
| 1964 NFL Championship Game | Baltimore | (56) Norm Schachter | (57) Joe Connell | (30) George Murphy | (25) Tom Kelleher | (16) Mike Lisetski | (52) George Rennix, (29) Stan Jaworowski |

## Standings

NFL Eastern Conference :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Cleveland Browns | 10 | 3 | 1 | .769 | 9–2–1 | 415 | 293 | W1 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 9 | 3 | 2 | .750 | 8–2–2 | 357 | 331 | W4 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 6–6 | 312 | 313 | L1 |
| Washington Redskins | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 5–7 | 307 | 305 | L2 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 5 | 8 | 1 | .385 | 4–7–1 | 250 | 289 | W1 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 5–7 | 253 | 315 | L1 |
| New York Giants | 2 | 10 | 2 | .167 | 2–8–2 | 241 | 399 | L4 |
    Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

## Media
### Radio

| Flagship station | Play-by-play | Color commentator |
| WERE–AM 1300 (main) WGAR–AM 1220 (backup) | Gib Shanley | Jim Graner |

### Pre season TV

| Local TV | Play-by-play | Color commentator |
| WEWS-TV 5 | Ken Coleman | Warren Lahr |

## Awards and records

* Jim Brown, NFL Rushing Leader, (1,446 yards)
* Frank Ryan, NFL Leader, Touchdown Passes, (25)

### Milestones

* Jim Brown, Seventh NFL Rushing Title

## 1965 NFL Pro Bowl (1964 NFL season), January 10, 1965

Pro Bowl
* Jim Brown, FB, NFL Eastern Conference
* Bill Glass, DE, NFL Eastern Conference
* Jim Houston, OLB, NFL Eastern Conference
* Dick Modzelewski, DT, NFL Eastern Conference
* Frank Ryan, QB, NFL Eastern Conference
* Dick Schafrath, T, NFL Eastern Conference
* Paul Warfield, SE, NFL Eastern Conference
* Blanton Collier, NFL Eastern Conference head coach
* Howard Brinker, NFL Eastern Conference defensive coordinator
* Fritz Heisler, NFL Eastern Conference offensive line coach
* Dub Jones, NFL Eastern Conference offensive backfield and ends coach
* Nick Skorich, NFL Eastern Conference defensive assistant coach
* Ed Ulinski, NFL Eastern Conference linebackers coach